


Dragonfly

by ThomE_Gemcity_06



Series: Fly [2]
Category: NCIS
Genre: AU, Angst, Dating in Secret, Drama, F/M, Family, Father-Son Relationship, Gen, Light Smut, PTSD, Romance, Secret Relationship, emotional drama
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-29
Updated: 2016-07-29
Packaged: 2018-07-27 13:16:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 10
Words: 10,751
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7619548
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ThomE_Gemcity_06/pseuds/ThomE_Gemcity_06
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>AU. As Kate and Shelby's relationship starts to blossom, it becomes that much harder to keep it secret.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. I

Kate couldn't help the girlish squeal that left her lips as long, deft fingers attacked her exposed ribs. She tried to escape them, but they followed her. So her next plan of action was retaliation-- She was a Special Agent and always thought ahead. Unlike her, Shelby's weakness was the soles of his feet.

Kate ran around her room, Shelby never a step behind. All she needed was a second of surprise, that second of hesitation. She was half naked, and knew that she could use that to her advantage-- he was a man after all. She scampered across the bed on her feet in four quick strides; she was agile and small. Shelby scrambled across the bed; him slower and bigger. That was when Kate made her move.

In an experienced move that would make any man jealous, she unclipped her bra and threw it across the room where it landed on the lamp on her dresser, and spun around to face Shelby, her hands on her hips. Shelby stopped right quick at the edge of the bed, his face mere inches from Kate's exposed breasts. His brows flickered and smile started to spread across his lips.

She saw her chance, and didn't hesitate in taking it. Shelby whooped in surprise as she tackled him playfully, but skilfully, to the bed. Before he could recover his senses about him, she used her hidden strength and flipped him onto his stomach. She pinned him by sitting on his backend and pulled his bare foot towards her chest. And thus began her revenge.

Shelby struggled against her at first: pursing his lips, burying his face in the scrunched blanket; but when she gathered up his other foot, wrapped an arm around his ankles and held them to her chest as her fingers danced across his sensitive soles, it was too much for him. It was muffled in the blanket at first, but them his head raised and laughter burst from him. It was loud, and he shook with it. It was powerful, and Kate bounced around with it, her determination to win keeping her in place. His hand pounded the bed with it.

"Oh, God!" He half laughed, half cried. "I can't take it!" Gasping, his ribs sore with it. "I can't."

"Say it." Kate told him, triumph in her voice.

Shelby wanted to hold out, to overtake her, but where would be the fun in that? He laughed. "I give! You win, I was a fool to ever challenge you. I am a tickle-amateur whilst you are a tickle-master."

"Mm." She agreed and accepted, pecking each ankle before letting them go. She rolled off of him and lay on her back down beside him.

He slumped, exhausted, his ribs still sore. He shifted on the bed so that he was now using her flat stomach as a makeshift pillow. He blew on the skin there.

"Mm." She moaned in pleasure, her fingers brushing through his short hair. It had grown out some since the hospital, nearly two months before, so he no longer had a military cut like his father's. She liked trailing her fingers through it. "So you'll think twice before you start tickling me?"

"Hm..." Shelby feigned thinking about it just to tease her. "Uh-uh. I kinda like the end results." He told her, and in a casual hand gesture, brushed her right breast with the back of his hand.

She leaned up onto her elbow and looked past her breasts’ down at him, her brow raised. "Really--" She started at the innocent look on his face, but got no further when her cell phone interrupted her. She sighed and stretched for in on the nightstand, she laid back and answered it, making a quiet gesture to Shelby. "What is it, DiNozzo?"

" _Good morning to you, too, Kate_." DiNozzo returned sarcastically. " _We got a case; dead sailor in the dog park."_

"Fine. I'll be there in 15min." she said, getting ready to hang up.

" _Don't worry about it_ ," he told her, " _I'll be around to pick you up in five_."

"What?!" Kate demanded, sitting up in her surprise. Shelby's training was the only thing that got him out of the way in time. "DiNozzo, I can drive myself." She said, sending a worried glance at Shelby, who sat up with her.

" _You're wasting precious time, Todd."_ Tony told her. " _Gibbs isn't gonna wait that long."_

Kate clenched her teeth. "Fine!" She growled and hung up on him before he could her. She threw her phone back onto her nightstand and got up from the bed.

Shelby sent her a questioning look at her frustration.

"DiNozzo's gonna be here in five minutes!" She expressed as she quickly clipped her bra back into place, thankfully she was already half-dressed when Shelby started his tickle-war.

Shelby knew what that meant, and got up from the bed, picking up his discarded shirt from the floor, he slipped it over his head. He'd only met Tony a few times, but knew the man better through the talks that he had with Kate. While he was sure that Tony was a good man, he didn't have the redeeming quality of understanding another person's privacy. In other words: Tony was nosey. And in Kate and Shelby's situation, that was a bad thing.

See, their relationship was a private matter-- more than that, it was a secret. The only people who knew that it existed was the two of them, and the sole reason for that was because of one reason--or person--Leroy Jethro Gibbs. His father had a strict rules surrounding his team. And while those rules didn't apply to Shelby, he'd made it obvious that he didn't want Kate to be involved with him intimately. And unless you were ready for the eventual backlash, you never messed with or kept secrets from Gibbs.

Shelby had just finished with the belt to his jeans when Kate came out of the bathroom. She'd already slipped on a gray, cotton, v-neck long sleeve that went along with her black slacks, and ran a comb through her hair and touched up her makeup. He watched her as she sat on the corner of her bed and put a pair of black socks on. He followed her out of the bedroom and down the hall to her living room. From the closet by the door, she grabbed her jacket and slipped it on before slipping her feet into her shoes. She got her backpack and purse, and made sure that she had everything before she sighed and finally turned back to Shelby, who had been waiting patiently for her.

"Gonna give me a kiss goodbye?" he asked her.

She smiled, and stepped up to him, wrapping her arms around his neck. And he put his hands on her hips. "How could I forget." She stood up on her toes and kissed him. She pulled back after a second, but not far and just looked at him. She brushed her fingers through his dark hair before her thumb brushed lightly over the scar that began under his left brow, and ended at the at the center of his eye lid.

All of his injuries were healed, but this one would stay with him forever. Forever marking the day that his mentor tried to murder the both of them. His vision had returned, but he had to put drops in it three times a day, and were a corrective contact lens.

He gave her a small smile and she returned it before she let go and gave him a peck. "I'll text you later." She said, as she turned away and grabbed her bag and purse. She knew that she was quickly running out of time; she wanted to meet Tony outside, not have him come up to her apartment and risk him seeing that Shelby was there.

She opened the door and slipped out, pulling it closed behind her, bumping into Tony. She couldn't help the gasp of surprise; she hadn't even seen him there. "Jeez, DiNozzo!" She glared at him as he smirked back, and she quickly locked her door-- Shelby would wait five minutes before he left himself.

"What's your rush?" he asked her, his gaze narrowed in curiosity. "You got someone back there?"

Kate's didn't show any outward reaction to his teasing-- he had no idea. "Yeah," She said sarcastically, rolling her eyes. "Sacs." At Tony's open-mouthed expression, she smirked and turned, walking down the hall from her apartment. Silently, she let out a breath of relief-- he didn't know.

Tony looked after her, but before he followed, he glanced back at her door... wondering. Maybe, just maybe.

**chapter I end--**


	2. II

Shelby knew that it had been a close one. Right on the other side of Kate's apartment door had been Tony, and neither of them could have know if he'd just come down the hall when Kate closed the door, or if he'd been there long enough to hear that she had been with someone else.

He had waited until he heard her fading footsteps, before he looked through the peephole and saw Tony follow after her, but not before he glanced back at the door. Shelby held his breath, hoping that the man didn't notice how the peephole had darkened. He let it out when Tony followed her, and backed away from the door before he sank down onto the couch. He sighed, and with his elbows on his knees, he buried his face in his palms.

He wasn't sure how much longer he could do this. Not the loving her part, but the secretive part. Before they were caught. It wasn't a matter of "if", it was a matter of "when". She was worth sneaking around with, but sometimes he wanted people to know-- she chose him, she was taken, the beautiful, tough, and intelligent woman was with him and she'd never be with them. He wanted people to be happy that they found each. He wanted his father to be happy for him.

But Shelby knew that with his healing relationship with his father, this could be the thing that broke them apart once again. And that was everything that he didn't want. He loved Gibbs, and was happy that the two of them had made up, but he was also happy being with Kate. It was so hard; which person did he care about more-- his father, or his secret girlfriend?

It was too hard! He loved them both, so why couldn't he have both? Why was life being so unfair to him? Shelby just wanted to be happy, and wondered why it was so hard.

He sighed heavily and groaned, leaning back, his head falling back against the back of the couch. It seemed that there was nothing he could do about it now. They had both agreed to keep it secret, and when the time came they would both decide to make it public. He climbed to his feet, _oh well_. He decided that before he left, he would tidy.

He left her apartment and locked it back up. Instead of taking the bus, he decided that he wanted to walk. To get some fresh air and clear his mind of any doubts. But instead of going home, he found himself in the park.

It felt good to be surrounded by nature again, sort of. He sat alone on the bench. He tried not to think about it much; the long grass, bending under the slight breeze, the whisper of noise that it made, the blue sky clear, the trees enclosing. Shelby shook his head and took a shuddering breath. It didn't sound so threatening, did it? It sounded peaceful and beautiful. But to Shelby, it wasn't. What lay in that grass? _Nothing,_ he shouted at himself. Burying his face in his hands. _This is a park, and there isn't a bomb hiding in the grass._ Maybe coming here wasn't the greatest idea, he'd rather be surrounded by four walls-- familiar walls.

He got out of the park, fast, he ran until he was two blocks away before he hailed a cab. He gave the guy a five dollar tip for picking him up and getting him home so fast. Shelby found that he avoided the grass and went up the walk instead. As usual, his dad left the door unlocked. He kicked off his shoes, and hung his jacket on the coat rack, his cell phone in the pocket. He didn't go into the kitchen and grab something to eat, he didn't go upstairs and wash Kate's scent from him; he went straight down into the dark, sawdust filled air basement. It was like he could breath again.

The basement was the one factor in this house that had stayed the same since before he was born, when his mom and Kelly died, and now. It was the constant. It was where Gibbs would spend his spare time, building boats. It was where Kelly would help him. And where Shelby would watch them. Kelly was always more into the building than Shelby had been. _This_ was home.

He pulled out the stool, and sat, flicking the lamp on. Gibbs had the ribcage of the boat assembled in the middle, and it didn't take him much effort to picture Gibbs and Kelly sanding down the wood together, by hand. He sighed, and found a small smile forming on his lips at the memory.

**chapter II end--**


	3. III

When the rest of his team arrived in the dog park, Gibbs noticed that Kate wasn't trailing behind DiNozzo, but Dinozzo was the one that was trailing behind Kate. He could see the way that Kate stalked toward them with her kit in hand, that she was annoyed and frustrated. _Hm._ He couldn't tell whether it was from the  surprise pickup that he sent Tony on, or whether she was with someone she wasn't supposed to be with.

Of course he had been suspicious of her and of Shelby. He would be an idiot if he wasn't, and no one took him for a fool. He told Kate, ordered her to stay away from his son, but he'd seen the look in her eyes before she left that simply scoffed: _Yeah Right._ He'd seen the look of disappointed in Shelby's eyes when she'd gone without saying good -bye, and knew that he was the cause. Of course he didn't want to hurt his son, but he just wanted to protect Shelby for the same reason why McGee didn't want Tony to meet his sister. But the feeling in his gut was yet to be confirmed; for now, he just had to wait it out. 

The day was a normal one, and they worked into the night. Gibbs kept an eye on Kate from the corner of his eye throughout the day. He seen her texting and getting no reply, looking at the phone in confusion when she didn't get one. He wasn't sure what to make of that. Around 9, he sent everyone home. He stayed for another half-hour before he drove home in his truck. He'd called the house to tell Shelby that he was on his way, but no one picked up.

When Gibbs pulled into the driveway, the outside lights where on; the first indication that Shelby was in fact home. The second one was the fact that the front door was locked; something that Shelby always did despite the fact that Gibbs said it was fine-- there was nothing worth stealing and if anyone did try, they'd get a bullet for their troubles.

He hung up his Jacket next to Shelby's. Though the outside light was on, none on the inside were. Gibbs wondered briefly if he was asleep, but it was too early for that. As he left the living room, Shelby's Jacket buzzed. He ignored it when he found light leaking into the darkness from down in the basement.

He came to the top of the steps and looked down. "Shelby?" He called. His son was sitting on the stool at the workbench, his back to the door. He showed no indication that he'd heard Gibbs, his shoulders hunched still. "Shelby..." Now Gibbs was worried. He quickly stomped down the stairs and to his son. He reached out.

"Sorry I didn't answer the phone." Shelby spoke up, and Gibbs stopped his hand.

He narrowed his gaze at the back of his son's head. "Why didn't you?"

"I couldn't bring myself to." Shelby closed his eyes briefly.

"Are you gonna tell me?" Gibbs waited, looking at his son's back.

Shelby chuckled, but there was no humour in it, just disgust. "I walked to the park, and I was just sitting there on a bench. I was surrounded by peacefulness... and--and I just... All I could think about that there was a bomb in the grass. That day-- it was just like today; quiet. And I was afraid of that quiet, and I ran-- just like I ran that day!"

Gibbs could hear the fear in his voice, and the shame. And Gibbs clenched his fists, forcing them to stay in place, knowing that Shelby didn't want to be touched in this moment. "That's normal," Gibbs told him, calmly. "Everybody goes through it."

But Shelby took no comfort in his father's words; it seemed to make him feel worse even when he knew that they were comforting. Even though his dad had told him almost the same this in the hospital. It made his shame grow. Because he wasn’t everybody, he was a Gibbs, he was his father's son, and he was not a coward! "I am not a coward!" Shelby shouted at his father, spinning around in the stool and jumping to his feet.

Gibbs didn't move and they stood a foot apart. Gibbs finally saw his son, and knew the look in those green eyes; he'd seen it in his own a few times. He'd seen the same look in his eyes when Shelby was in the hospital.

"No, you're not." Gibbs agreed. "You've been through more things in the last fifteen-years that most people won't experience in their entire lives. When I had found out about your mother and sister, I had just come out of a comma caused by an IED. I had been so much pain, and I wasn't able to handle it. I pushed you away, Shelby, because you have your mother's eyes." Shelby was blinking up at him, shocked. Gibbs grasped his son's face, wanting to make sure that he heard what he was going to say next, "You're strong, Shelby. Stronger than me."

Shelby took a shuttering breath as he searched his father's eyes to see if it was true.

"You know that I don't lie, Shelby. Or exaggerate." Gibbs told him.

"So you really mean it, dad?" Shelby asked.

"I do. You were always strong like you mother." Gibbs told him softly. "I know that I've never told you this, but I am proud of you, Shelby. And I'm proud to be you father." He pulled Shelby to him, and hugged his son.

Shelby had been deeply affected by this statement. His mother had been a beautiful and strong woman, a great mother. And he had no shame in being compared with her. He hugged his father back. In this moment, he felt safe and happy, and loved. The bomb had nothing on him as long as he had this.

**chapter III end--**

 


	4. IV

It was the afternoon the next day before Shelby was able to see Kate. After his conversation with his dad in the basement, the two had gone upstairs, had a little something to eat, and watched a little television before they went to bed. Shelby was only able to check his phone this morning and saw that he missed more than a dozen texts. The first half was normal, and then the second half was concern.

Shelby felt bad. Kate had told him that she would text him, but after the park, his phone was the last thing on his mind. And after his heart-to-heart with Gibbs, he just wanted to spent time with his father like they did when he was a kid. And it was nice, it relaxed him; there was no pretence, no motive.

He met Kate at a small café, that she knew none of her team went to. When he arrived, she was already at a table, a coffee in front of her. As he approached her, he had his hand behind his back, hiding what he held from her sight. He felt like such an asshole for forgetting about her text.

When Kate saw him, she smiled; glad to see that he wasn't hurt or anything, but now she felt a little angry that he'd ignored her. She pursed her lips a little as he sat across from her.

"Hi." He said. "I'm sorry." He gave her a smile and he held out to her what he had in his hand.

Kate looked at the single tiger lily, and she couldn’t help but break easily. She smiled and took it from him, spinning the flower between her fingers. She looked up at him. "What happened?" She asked, taking his hand.

Shelby took a deep breath and sighed, glancing away. He didn't want to seem like a coward in front of her. He'd been in the fight overseas for months. He'd killed people and he'd seen things. She'd done the similar. And this one thing... it was tearing at his brain. She gave his hand a squeeze and Shelby knew that he couldn't lie to her.

He sighed once more before he looked back at her. He tightened his grip on her hand a little. "Yesterday when I left your apartment, I walked through the park instead of taking the bus straight home." He explained and Kate nodded along; it wasn't so bad of a story but knew this was just the beginning. "I sat on a bench, just sitting there... and I had a flashback."

"What?" Kate asked in concern, her voice lowered with it.

"I flashed back to the bombing, Kate." He said, disappointed in himself even after his conversation with his father. He sighed. "Nothing like this has happened before, and I don't know why now."

Kate gave him a soft smile. "Maybe the shock of it's over."

He squinted at her for a moment as he thought about it. "Maybe." He gave a little shrug. "What I can't get over is why Commander Reynolds ordered me to run if he intended to kill me as well." He admitted.

"Maybe Reynolds couldn’t die knowing that he killed another Marine, one he was training, too." Kate suggested helpfully.

Shelby sighed. "I hope you're right." He told her, and taking her hand, he lifted it up to his mouth and kissed her palm. "And you usually are."

She chuckled. "Trying to stack up your brownie points?"

"Thinking about cashing them in, actually." He flashed her a sultry smile.

She scoffed. "Later," She promised as she got a glance at her watch; she didn't want to be gone from the office longer than she had to. She didn't want to draw attention.

"Okay." Shelby nodded and stood up with her. He gave her a small kiss before she went on her way with his flower in hand. "I promise to answer your texts this time!" He called after her, and though she didn't glance back at him, he knew that she was smiling.

He paid for her coffee, and he took the long way home, jogging all the way. It had been two months, and soon his medical leave was going to be over. He was out of shape and needed to get back into it if he was going to pass his physical, not to mention his psych evaluation. He was done with E.O.D., feeling much more comfortable being a scout sniper like his dad.

**chapter IV break...**

Gibbs could see it on Kate's face the instant that she stepped from the elevator and into to bullpen. She no longer seemed distracted, and instead had a secretive, lilt to her lips. And as she sat back at her desk, it seemed that Gibbs wasn't the only one who noticed. He watched out of the corner of his eye.

DiNozzo looked at her across the bullpen, curiously. His gaze narrowed. "Have fun at your secret rendezvous, Todd?" He asked, smirking.

"What?!" Kate demanded, her head shooting up.

DiNozzo chuckle and shook his head. "Jeez, Kate. It was a joke, don't get your panties in a bunch." Though he was smiling, his eyes were narrowed intently in thought.

Kate sneered at him, scoffing, forcing herself to relax. He didn't know. "You're such an idiot, Tony." She told him, glancing at Gibbs from the corner of her eye before she went back to work; she spotted him watching her.

She forced herself not to be tense under his piercing gaze, and deliver her findings in a cool voice. "I located the sailor's dog, Gibbs. Animal catchers found it early this morning."

"Simms was killed late last night." Tony pointed out.

"He could've been walking the dog when he was killed." Kate said. "I also found his dog walker."

"Take DiNozzo." Gibbs told her.

She nodded and both Agents gathered their bags to get a statement from the dog walker.

Gibbs watched them go. He wondered if Kate visited with Shelby while she was gone. Of course he'd noticed the little changes in Shelby. The source less smiles. The late nights, and the absent ones. Two months ago, with interviewing his fellow Marines, Gibbs found that Shelby didn't have friends or a girlfriend. That must've changed. And Gibbs knew, in his gut, that it was after his meeting with Kate.

All Gibbs wanted to do was protect his son, make up for the fifteen years that he hadn't. He knew that Kate wasn't a bad woman, she was a good Agent and a friend. But this was his son. He'd seen all the relationships that his team has had, how quick they've come and go because of the job. Granted, Kate wasn't like DiNozzo in the department, but he didn't want his son to get hurt in his heart again needlessly.

**chapter IV end--**


	5. V

When Shelby got back from his jog, avoiding the park, he took a shower; washing the sweat away. He was more out of breath than he would have thought. He supposed that two months without any exercise, bent him more out of shape than he thought. He'd go for another jog before he went to bed, and in the morning, he'd go for a run instead. When he got out of the shower and dressed, he went into the kitchen and made a ham sandwich that he ate at the kitchen table instead of in front of the television.

Afterward, he checked his cell just in case. No texts from Kate. He had so much pent up energy from his tryst with her, and even after his run. So he cleaned. In the years working at his grandfather's store, he'd found cleaning it to be a relaxing outlet. It benefited both himself and Jackson. By the time Gibbs got back, this place would be spotless.

Around six o'clock, Shelby made dinner. Lasagne. Enough to hold the two of them tonight and tomorrow. He didn't know when Gibbs was going to be back, but figured that he'd be back around the same time that he did last night. It was enough time for the dish to cook. And while it did, he went down into the basement and tidied.

He didn't move anything around, his dad would hate that more than anything. But he swept and dusted. He clapped the dust from his hands, a satisfied smile on his lips as he went back upstairs. He sat at the table and read this morning's paper while he waited for dinner and his father.

It was just gracing 9 when he heard Gibbs' truck pulled in the drive, the slamming of its door, and then the front door open.

When Gibbs stepped inside the house, he could smell it. A baking, home-cooked meal. It made him flash back to a time when it was Shannon in that kitchen cooking.

"You're just in time!" Shelby called to him from the kitchen. He slipped oven mitts over his hands and reached into the oven. "It just finished." He pulled out the dish and set it on top of the stove. The melted cheese on top was golden and crispy. Perfect.

Gibbs stood in the archway of the kitchen and watched his son, and noted the grin on his face when Shelby turned to him.

"How'd it go?" He asked, taking off the mitts and tossing them on the counter behind him.

Gibbs cocked a brow at him but found a small smile on his lips. The house looked clean and Shelby cooked dinner, that must mean that he'd gotten over his flashback from yesterday. That was good. "Case closed." Gibbs told him simply, not wanting to talk about the violence of his day job with his son.

"That's great!" Shelby took out two plates from the cupboard and utensils from the drawer, and set them on the table, he set out a bowl of buns, butter from the fridge, and poured a hot mug of coffee for them both of them. And lastly, he set the lasagne on a holder at the center of the table before he sat down. He shoved in and looked up at Gibbs with furrowed brows when his father stayed standing. "Is something wrong?" He asked.

Gibbs shook his head, not saying anything as he took the knife and cut into the crust of the lasagne and scooped a portion onto each of their plates before he sat the end of the small table.

They didn't talk as they ate, until halfway through, and Shelby finally spoke.

"After supper I'm going to go for a jog." Shelby told his father.

Gibbs looked up at him. "This late?"

Shelby chuckled. "Nothing bad is going to happen, dad."

Gibbs narrowed his gaze. "It's too late to be running."

"Dad!" Shelby protested, putting his fork down. "I'm a grown man, I can take care of myself."

He didn't say anything for a long moment as he looked at his son, trying to judge if the young man had really gotten over what had happened yesterday. Shelby waited patiently. "Alright." He finally agreed.

Shelby smiled at Gibbs like he was a little boy again, asking to go to the park on the weekend. He finished the last few bites of his supper, and mopped up the remaining sauce from his plate with a bun. He waited for Gibbs to finish as well before he cleared the table of their dishes, put away the remaining few buns, and put a sheet of tinfoil over the casserole dish and stored it in the fridge. While Shelby washed the dishes, Gibbs went up stairs and changed out of his work clothes before he went down into the basement to work on his boat. When Shelby was finished tiding the dishes, he went up stairs as well and slipped on a pair of shorts, a t-shirt and a zip-up sweater.

He stuck his head through the door that led down to the basement. "I'm leaving!" he called down to Gibbs.

"How long you gonna be?" Gibbs asked.

"Just a couple of hours." Shelby told him.

Gibbs nodded.

Shelby made sure that he had his wallet and cell phone in his pockets before he left the house. And after stretching his muscles in the driveway, he headed north; deciding that he was going to jog to Kate's, take a little rest, and then jog back home. He'd be back before Gibbs even came up from the basement. His father could get so engrossed in his work that the next time he came up for breath, Shelby would be back, showered and ready for bed.

**Chapter V end--**

 


	6. VI

It was the end of the month and secretly Shelby had already gone to his mandated psych eval. The reason that he hadn't told the others about it was because he didn't want to get anyone's expectations up and have them dashed away if he didn't pass--especially his own of himself.

And the only reason why he was at the naval base now, a week later, was because he had passed. Instead of lying about his flashback, Shelby decided to buck up, and he told the Sergeant about it. But since he hadn't had one since, and where he would be going had no lush green grass in sight, he'd passed. And now, after getting checked out by a Military Doctor to make sure that all his injuries had been completely healed, including his eye.

Now was the hands-on physical obstacle course that he needed to pass under an hour. There were the tires, and ropes, the climbing wall, mud pits, trenches, waterholes, bars, beams, running 1km. But he did it, sure, at the end it was like he jumped in the deep-end, soaking in his own sweat; his knees shaking, barely able to hold him up it seemed, but he forced himself to stay on his feet; but he did it under an hour, rounding near his old time, and he was proud of himself for that--though he did have a fleeting thought of going again to see if he could beat that time once he could breath again.

On Friday, he was scheduled to requalify for his firearms exam; the last time that he shot a rifle was almost a year ago, let alone his side arm, which was longer than that.

This was the one test that made him the most nervous. Though his eye was cleared by the doctor, he still wasn't so sure. He still had to use the eye drops twice a day. So Shelby knew that it hadn't completely righted itself. If he didn't pass--no... if he wasn't as good as he used to be, he would never be able to come back from this. If he wasn't as good as he was before the bombing, then he knew that he could never put himself back into the line of duty.

Of course Gibbs wasn't home when he got back from the navel base. Shelby took a slow shower, pampering his used muscles with hot water. After he dried off and put on a pair of loose pants and t-shirt, he laid down in bed. His relaxation didn't last more than five minutes--his mind still going back to his arms qualification that was in two days. His index finger itched to wrap around the sensitive trigger of his personal rifle, his palm aching to wrap around its grip and barrel. He remembered the days when he bellied down on the hot sand, the sun beating down on his back as he timed his breaths with his heartbeat and that to his finger tip, his right eye hooded a he peered through his scope and at his target.

Shelby sat up, he couldn't take it any more. He may not be able to handle his personal weapons until he got to the base on Friday, but he knew that his father still had his rifle from back in the day. He left his room and went downstairs, and flicked on the light before he went into the basement. He knew the place that Gibbs kept the rifle locked away in one of the his works benches, from when he was child. He knew that it was still there to this day.

Shelby sat in the stool and looked at the tiny lock that kept it closed. He scoffed. "That'll never stop anyone, dad." Of course he didn't have a key, but he made easy work at the poor excuse of security. Gibbs would be pissed that he did this without asking, but all Shelby wanted to do was get reacquainted with having its body in his palms again--it wasn't like he was going to shoot it.

He pulled the drawer open, and as he ran his fingers over the desert camouflage painted metal, he felt that tiny skip in his heart. As he picked it up and checked to see that the barrel was empty, he felt that click inside him. Though this gun was not his own, he knew that when he took hold of his personal rifle, he'd feel like he regained a lost limb.

Time blurred past him as he handle the rifle. Disassembled it, cleaned it, then reassembled it. And the next thing that Shelby knew, he was hearing his father's truck pull into the drive. He gasped back into reality, quickly made sure that the rifle was assemble correctly, before he put it back in the drawer, closed it, and locked it. His eyes darted around the desk to make sure that nothing was out of place, before he dashed up the stairs just as Gibbs was coming in the front door. He flicked off the light, closed the door and with his arm up, he leaned against the corner of the wall at the living room. He glanced at his watch as Gibbs hung up his Jacket and realized that he'd spent three hours down there without realizing it.

Shelby gave his father a square smile when Gibbs looked at him through slightly narrowed steel eyes. "You're home early," he remarked.

"It was a slow day." Gibbs told him; Shelby nodded. "How did it go today?" he questioned.

Shelby froze for a split second; there was no way that his father knew that he was trying to get back in, right? No, because he hadn't told anyone. "Just... went to the gym, worked out a little."

Gibbs' brow just flicked as he walked passed Shelby and into the kitchen. "Have you eaten yet?"

Shelby shook his head and followed. "No. Not yet,"

"I'll order up some Tai food." Closing the fridge door and standing up, finding nothing in particular that appealed to him.

"Sure," He shrugged, sitting down at the table.

Gibbs took out his cell and dialled the number on the pamphlet on the fridge. Shelby watched him order their food, and wondered why he was acting so guilty. But then he remembered that, of course, because he was keeping a sort of big secret from the people that he loved. He was going back to the military without discussing it with anyone. He needed to because he had nothing else.

**Chapter VI end--**


	7. VII

Though Shelby passed his firearms exam that Friday afternoon, he stayed at the range long after the instructor had gone. He couldn't just take his baby out after a year, fire her a couple of times and put her away again. No. He needed to hold her again in his arms, feel the surge of the rifle as it fired. He needed to get reacquainted with her; the shape of her, the power she held, the soundness of her and the flaws that were there.

He went to the long, ground range, laying on his stomach, his eye hooded, gazing through his scope, adjusting for the wind, his finger curled around the trigger, pulling it on an exhale. The next time he looked up, the sun was at its highest peak in the sky.

Before he sat up, he made sure that the rifle barrel was empty. His muscles were a little cramped from staying in the same position for so long, but it was a familiar feeling. He signed his weapon in, and signed himself out of the range before he left the navel base. He had a appointment on Monday with the base's Commander to see where he would be assigned next. Be it the base in Washington, or the base back in Cumberland or maybe back over seas.

Before he went home, Shelby decided that he deserved a little something. He was proud of his body, for the healing power that it had after such a trauma. He wasn't really a dessert kind of guy, but today he would indulge himself.

**chapter VII break...**

Shelby couldn't remember the last time he'd spent time with Kate, though he was sure that it had only been a few days, but it felt like forever. He wasn't sure how drastically his life was going to change on Monday, so he wanted to spend the weekend with her unhindered by heavy thoughts. It was his luck that she had the weekend off, and he hoped that the world would be generous to him and not have a Marine murdered to take her away from him.

Shelby texted her not to have any plans tonight, because he wanted to take her out to dinner. Her reply made him blush deeply, and become more eager for night to fall. Of course, since Shelby didn't have a car, they used Kate's, though he drove. They went to a restaurant where he'd made reservations that afternoon. He wore a dark suit with a silk tie and dress shoes, and Kate wore a dark red dress without the straps that made her beautifully sexy--not that she needed to dress up to look that way.

They were seated at a table for two. The lights were dim and it was a romantic scene, with a roses on the table and a lit candle. Kate ordered the salmon, and Shelby the ravioli. While they waited for their orders to arrive, Shelby reached across the table and held Kate's hand, twining their fingers. She smiled at him.

"You look beautiful," Shelby whispered.

She chuckled softly. "Thanks," She replied. "You don't clean up so bad, either, I think."

"Neither did I." He laughed. "You, on the other hand, Kate, could wear a trash bag and still look sexy." He complimented her.

"Thanks." She said dryly.

Instead of speaking further, he lifted her hand and pressed his lips to her knuckles. Finally, their food arrived, and Shelby released her hand with reluctance as he had to gaze at her a moment longer before turned to his food.

They were halfway through before Kate finally spoke again.

"What's the special occasion?" She questioned.

Shelby looked up at her, but before he spoke he took a drink from his glass of water. Unlike Kate who had a glass of champagne. He smiled at her. "We've been going out for three months now, Kate. And not once have we just gone out and had dinner at a decent place. This is our first date, Kate!"

Kate couldn't help but be shocked by this, had they never really been on a date? "But it feels like we've been doing this for years." She said.

Shelby nodded. "Lovely years." He told her, taking her unoccupied hand again.

She smiled at him and sighed. "I can't believe that we've never been on a real date before, Shel. I guess all this secrecy stuff has been taking up all our time, hasn't it. Time that we could have spent doing things like this."

He looked at her curiously. "Are you suggesting what I think your suggesting?"

"And what do you think I'm suggesting?

"Ah, I'd rather you say it, least I get it wrong."

Kate licked her lips lightly. "Maybe we should be open about our relationship."

He'd been waiting to hear that for a long time, but now that she actually said it, it felt like it was too soon. She must have seen the expression on his face for she smiled with sympathy, and gave his hand a squeeze.

"Talk to me."

Shelby sighed. "I guess I'm afraid how dad's going to act."

"So am I."

"I just don't want your working relationship with him to be effected by what we have. You guys need to trust each other and how is that going to fair when he didn't want to this to happen in the first place?" He said.

But Kate shook her head. "I don't think Gibbs would take out his personal feelings about me on the job, Shelby." She said. "On some level I think he already knows about us. I can feel his stare when my back is turned..." She gave her head a little shake. "Gibbs is not stupid. He's had to have noticed a change, either in you, me, or both of us."

"I think you're right about that," Shelby agreed with her, playing with her fingers. "I guess that I haven't been as conspicuous as I could be. When you guys investigated the bombing, I know that you had to look into me. And found out from the other Marines on base that I had no social life, it was just about my Military career. And now, after the bombing; I go out without notice, or spend nights out." He sighed. "He looks at me sometimes with narrowed eyes, and I can help but feel a little guilty, which I'm sure he sees."

"Yeah, sometimes that happens with me too." Kate admitted.

Shelby frowned. "Do you think it's time?"

She nodded. "Yeah. Better we tell him, than DiNozzo find out and blurt it or hold it against me."

"Okay. But not this weekend." He told her. "I want it to be unhindered by heavy thoughts."

She smiled as he carefully leaned forward and kissed her gently on the lips. After he sat back, they finished their meal. Though what he had sang didn't ring so true for him as it may have for her. While the thought of hiding something this big from his father weighed on him, it didn't weigh as much as informing neither of them that he was back in the Navy.

**chapter VII end--**

 


	8. VIII

Shelby had pushed any concerning thoughts about his future from his brain. He wanted to wholly focus on Kate and that was it. And instead of following their usual drift on the weekends, Shelby veered them towards something different. On Saturday as well as Sunday night, Shelby took Kate out for dinner at two different restaurants\--ones that he was positive the rest of her team never went. 

Friday, afterwards, they walked in the park and just talked, holding hands the whole time. Saturday, afterwards, he took her to a _Romeo & Juliet _Shakespearian play that was on that night, something that reflected upon their own situation. And Sunday, afterwards, they came back to Kate's apartment and made love three times.

The blinds of the window were up and whatever moonlight that wasn't blocked out by the lit streetlamp, bathed the room in a silvery-yellow glow. Shelby breathed contently as his fingers trailed lightly up and down Kate's curved, bare back. Her head lay on his bare chest as they lay naked under the blanket, just having made love moments earlier.

He was happy as she lay, lightly dozing on his chest. Here, right now, with the woman he loved. His first true love. It didn't matter that tomorrow they would go their separate ways, and he'd find out whether or not he'd ever see her again when they reunited to tell Gibbs about their relationship.

He wondered how things had gotten so complicated in his life as his eyelids grew heavy and sleep took him.

**chapter VIII break...**

Before Kate left to head for the office, Shelby stopped her before she could leave. She looked up at him curiously as he cupped her face and gazed into her eyes for a long moment, his own filled with love and admiration. She smiled up at him, and he leaned in and kissed her long and slow, sensual and with the tip of his tongue. When he finally pulled away, his forehead pressed against hers, she was breathless.

"I'm only going to work," She told him, curious.

"I know," He said softly. "But that doesn't mean I can't miss you."

"Oh," She sighed. "I'll miss you too. This weekend was great, Shelby."

"Yeah," Shelby straightened, his hands on her shoulders. "You'll text me later?"

"Yeah." She nodded. "We're going to get it over with today, Shel. And then we can move on."

Shelby pecked her on the lips in front of her apartment building, and then they went on their separate ways; Kate to N.C.I.S. and Shelby off to find what part of his future held.

**chapter VIII break...**

The night was wrapping up, DiNozzo and McGee had already left, and all that remained was Gibbs, who was slightly surprised that Kate was still there as well. He was usually the last one at the office, and before him, was Tim. He looked across his desk at Kate next to him with narrowed eyes.

"No plans, Kate?" He asked.

"Hmm?" She looked up at him from her computer screen. "Oh, I do."

Gibbs cocked his brow. "Why you still here?"

Kate swallowed nervously and cleared her throat. "I'm waiting." She told him.

He didn't say anything, just nodded, as he watched her. She seemed to go back to work, but Gibbs knew better. Long ago he'd learned to read body language. Her busy demeanour was fictitious and he wondered what she could be hiding. His suspicions grew thicker as he remembered back on the hospital.

Gibbs was very conscious of the fact that Shelby was leaving late at night, and staying out till morning, or sometimes even the whole weekend. And he'd of course matched these nights with Kate's days-off. More times than not they matched up. Though this didn't prove much. Just short of following his son, Gibbs called his father. Jackson Gibbs was a smooth fellow for an older man. And he was the smoothest Gibbs had ever heard when he asked if he knew about any on these friends that Shelby suddenly had.

Jackson's gruff reply had been: " _Your boy had finally gotten a step up in life, Jethro. Be happy for him for once. Don't go and trip him up with your forceful brashness._ " and he'd hung up.

As smooth as he was, Jackson knew something that Gibbs didn't. And that didn't sit well with him. Though he and Shelby were closer than they were three months before, he knew that they’d never be as close as Shelby and Jackson. And Gibbs knew that it was his fault. He'd pushed Shelby away when the boy needed him the most, pushed him into the arms of his grandfather.

Gibbs silently sighed to himself as he watched Kate out of the corner of his eyes as he, too, pretended to work. Impatience was getting to him because he was going to get nowhere like this. He was done 'investigating'! Why was he being quiet about this when he could just as easily force the answer out of Kate like he did with any other suspect?

He turned to Kate as the elevator dinged mutely and watched as Kate straightened right up, and her head cocked the slightest bit. And Gibbs paused, watching her. Out of the corner of his eye he saw an Agent step from the elevator, probably forgot something from his desk. But when the man turned to his office and not the other way, Gibbs looked at him fully and was surprised.

"Shelby?" Gibbs asked.

Shelby smiled nervously at him as he stopped at the entrance, and held up his hand in a wave. "Hey, dad." He nodded to Kate and gave her a small smile. "Dad, I wanted to talk to you." Shelby said, glancing at Kate for encouragement before looking back at Gibbs. "There's something that I've been wanting to tell-- that _we've_ been wanting to tell you." He looked at Kate again, as she turned to Gibbs in her chair and stood. Shelby reached over and took her hand.

Gibbs glanced between the two of them, and his gut churned. He knew this. He had known what this was all along. But yet, it hit him. He looked at them, at their clasped hands, his eyes narrowed, his blue irises turned to cold steel. He stood, tall, broad-shouldered. Both looked at him, they seemed frozen as they looked at him. Though they hadn't really said anything, that hand clasp said all he needed to hear. He said nothing as he took his jacket from the back of his chair and walked passed them to the elevator. They were stuck as the muted ding sounded and Gibbs disappeared.

Minutes passed before they turned and looked at each other, surprise mirrored in her eyes, but only resignation was in his. Kate spoke first.

"That didn't go quite as I expected it," She remarked. "But it still wasn't the worst reaction I though of."

Shelby didn't say anything and instead, sighed heavily and hung his head.

Kate looked at him in concern and stepped to him. "Shelby? What's wrong?"

Shelby looked up, his expression broken. "Did you see the look on his face?"

Kate nodded.

"I swore to myself that I would never make him look at me that way again."

"Shelby, it's not your fault--" Kate tried to sooth him, but he shook his head.

"It is!" He felt his vision blur as tears gathered unwanted in his eyes.

Kate let go of his hand, and cupped his face. "Now you listen to me!" Shelby looked at her with widened eyes. "You did nothing wrong. Gibbs is being unreasonable. You deserve happiness, Shelby. You do. And I love you, and you love me. I’m happy. And I know that you are too. And he needs to understand that. You need to make him understand that, Shel. _You_." Kate gave her head a little shake. "You need to stand up to him." She said firmly.

The tears in Shelby's green gaze dried as he listened to her, and though the last of what she said hurt a little, he knew that she was right. After all that had happened, he was finally happy with his life. Gibbs needed to understand that, he needed to make his father understand that.

He looked down at her with affection, his head cocked a little as he brushed his fingers through her brown locks like silk ribbons. "You're right." He said, his shoulders straightened as he bent and kissed her. "Will you be alright?" He asked, touching her cheek.

Kate grasped her hand. "I'll be fine." She assured him, looking at him with pride. "Now go find Gibbs." She let go of his hand. "You need to clear this up before you leave."

"I'll call you later." He told her, needing to give her one more kiss before he left in a hurry, wondering whether or not this would break his relationship with Gibbs for good this time, especially if he left with this un-mended.

**chapter VIII end--**

 


	9. IX

Shelby found Gibbs sitting in his truck in the parking lot. He stood there, looking at his father for a moment through the window, before he went up and knocked on the glass. Gibbs did nothing to acknowledge him.

"Dad?" Shelby tugged on the door handle, but it never opened. Locked. He couldn't believe why his father was acting so childish over something as important as his happiness. "You're being ridiculous!" He muttered, stepping back. "Unlock the door."

Instead of unlocking the door, Gibbs wound down his window, half-way. Shelby glowered at him for a short moment, but realized that it was the best he was going to get, his father being bull-headed as always.

"I'm happy, dad. Kate's happy. We love each other. Why do you have to be angry about that?"

"It's for your own good." Gibbs told him.

"How can never being happy be for my own good?!" Shelby demanded.

"I was in love once, with your mother." Gibbs spoke, his voice low. And Shelby listened intently. "And she was taken away from me harshly and suddenly. I've never been able to love another woman quite the same."

Shelby felt sympathy for his father, but that had nothing to do with him. And he said so, "And you think that's going to happen to me?"

"It's part of the job."

"So part of the job is dying? You're going to die, Kate's going to die, everybody's just going to die?! And what about me?!" Shelby shouted at him.

Gibbs finally looked at him. "You're out of the Marines, you get a check in the mail every month. You're fine." He didn't even try to contradict what his son had said.

Shelby's face was frozen for one instance before it melted in anger. "These last few weeks I've been going to the Naval base and talking to the Commander, getting reassigned-- Next Friday I'm shipping out for another tour in Israel!" He yelled with the heat of it, spun on his heel and started to storm from the parking lot. This was not how he wanted to tell his father, he wanted to stitch up the things between them perfectly like Kate said before he left, but it seemed that it wasn't going to happen any time soon. He'd stay with Kate until he left.

Gibbs was still for a moment, letting it sink in. And when it did, his gut jumped around his throat. He jumped from his truck, and ran after his son. He reached Shelby and grabbed him, spun him around, pinning him in place with both hands on the younger man's shoulders. He looked into Shelby's eyes, forcing himself to see passed the green hue; they were narrowed and walled up, hardened like his clenched jaw.

"Shelby... Why would you wait to tell something like that until the last minute?" He said.

"Are you talking about my being in love, or, going back on tour?" Shelby was on the edge of sneering. He forced himself to stay under his father's hands, having the half hope he needed to believe that his father would come around.

"I'm only trying to protect you," Gibbs answered him.

"I'm not a little child, dad!" Shelby protested. "You can't just pick-up where you left off fifteen-years ago. I'm not the helpless child that you left anymore. I'm a grown man. And it took me almost getting blown up to realize that I've never lived a day in my life until I got released from the hospital, and snuck out of the house to ask Kate on a date. That time that she spent with me in the hospital--short as it was--I fell in love. And you don't seem to want me to be happy. Do you want me to be alone my whole life, dad? Do you?"

"I'm trying to be a father. I'm trying to protect you from the hurt." Gibbs told him firmly, giving him a little shake. "I fell in love. I made a family. And then I went away on tour. And I lost it all. Don't make the same mistakes as me, Shelby!"

Shelby looked at him with widened eyes; he'd never seen this side of his father before--this kind of passion. He was shocked. "Dad... Mom witnessed a crime, and she was killed. Kate fights crimes, and we both know the risk. I've already told Kate about my decision to go back, and we're fine. And we've decided that neither of us is going to die." He shrugged simply.

Gibbs looked at him with amazement, but what he said held nothing of the such. "You can't know whether or not you're going to die over there, or Kate over here."

"I do... Because I trust _you_ , dad." Shelby was no longer simmering in anger, he was swimming in calm.

Gibbs was quiet for a long moment. "Why? I've done nothing for you to have faith in me."

"Dad, I was angry at you for such a long time. But I understand now, because of Kate. I'm in love and you can't stop it. I have faith in you and you can't fight it."

Gibbs breathed for a moment, and squeezed his son's shoulders. "I'm sorry." He said, and meant it. And he was no weaker for saying so.

Shelby smiled happily at his father. "I know."

Shelby hugged his father and Gibbs returned the gesture. Stitched up tightly.

**chapter IX end--**

 


	10. Epilogue

The silence stretched.

The day that Shelby was to ship off was closing in, and he wanted to spend his last days in Washington with the people that he loved. He'd already taken the weekend to visit Jackson back in Stillwater. And now he was having an apparently _quiet_ meal with his dad and Kate.

He sat at the end of the table with Gibbs to his right and Kate on his left, silently glaring at each other, still. It had been four days since the Friday that Shelby had confronted Gibbs with the news of both Kate and himself, and going back on tour. Nothing had changed--except for their existing friendly and trusting relationship--which now seemed to be a rivalry of sorts. Shelby had no idea what their problem was--he loved them both and they loved him back.

Shelby wanted this dinner to be a special one. Their first family dinner--the three of them. One that he knew would be the first of many whether they liked it or not. One that would continue when he got back from Israel. He had cooked, and maybe it wasn't the most special of meals, but he had worked hard. Meatloaf, mashed potatoes, homemade gravy, steamed vegetables, buns. And, from the bakery downtown, a pecan pie--for which he knew they both favoured, whether both knew it or not.

He inserted the fork into his mouth, accompanied with the three food groups, and chewed, his gaze darting between the two. He had let this silence and tension go on for long enough. He swallowed, took a drink from his glass of water, and snapped with frustration.

"That's enough already!" They both looked at him with brows raised with different angels. He took a breath; anger wouldn't solve anything, calmness would. "This is ridiculous. Dad… Kate and I are together, and just because you're not comfortable with that, doesn't mean we're going to break-up." He looked his father in the eye as he held Kate's hand on the corner of the table, where Gibbs glimpsed it. Shelby looked at Kate. "Kate, I know that you're upset, but we're here and that has to mean something." Shelby looked pointedly between the two of them. "Now, when I'm gone the only thing you both have is each other--whether you like it or not."

Slowly, they looked at each other across their meal. Kate was the one who nodded first; though she wasn't one to admit her mistakes first, she was never the last one either. Gibbs, after a moment, nodded as well; it was a rare occasion when he made mistakes, but he did make them--in this case exactly.

"Good." Shelby beamed at them both. Mission accomplished. When he was overseas, they'd have each other--and that one piece of knowledge would pull him through the hell he had volunteered for the second time around.

"It's good to see you talking again, Shelby." Gibbs said.

Shelby looked at him in surprise, but nodded. He liked to chat, about nothing and everything, whether you were really listening or not. That had stopped when he was twelve, when his mother and sister were killed, and his father might as well have been too. But when he met Kate, sometimes he just couldn't stay quiet. Though he didn't do it as much as he did when he was a kid, it was there, in the shadows. It made him wonder why he was going back to a place where he might as well be alone even though he technically was going to be virtually surrounded by people.

**chapter X end--**

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Check out the next sequel in the trilogy: Firefly!


End file.
